Tumwater tree board moves forward on urban forester hire, grant programs and a name change

TUMWATER, Wash. — The Tumwater Tree Board on Jan. 13 discussed hiring an Urban Forester paid through a U.S. Forest Service grant, reviewed grant-funded programs meant to benefit disadvantaged neighborhoods, and voted to pursue changing its name to the Urban Forestry Advisory Board.

City staff member Tanya, the board’s tree program lead, told members the Urban Forester position “is now posted. It's live. We've already received 1 applicant,” and that the city will conduct its first review of applications in early February. Tanya said the position’s salary “starts at $80,000 and goes up to $100 something,” and that the city aims to have an offer accepted by the end of the quarter to meet grant milestones.

Those grant milestones include a Canopy Equity Program (milestone 3) intended to distribute roughly 250 trees with establishment materials to disadvantaged neighborhoods, and a tree-assessment assistance effort (milestone 4) that would provide about 50 pro bono tree-health assessments to qualifying residents, Tanya said. A later milestone (milestone 5) would fund a small street-tree trimming grant for low- and moderate-income residents, planned for 2027.

Why it matters: the U.S. Forest Service–funded program and linked River Network contract guide how the new Urban Forester will allocate time and services across the city. Tanya said the grant requires recordkeeping showing that about 50% of the Urban Forester’s time be spent in federally identified disadvantaged areas; that allocation will be tracked through timesheets and must withstand audit review. The grant term is three years, staff said.

Board members pressed for operational details. Tanya said the urban forester’s first review of candidates is early February and the job announcement has been circulated to regional and national ISA chapters and local forestry networks. She described milestone 3 as an enhanced version of an Arbor Day giveaway, noting the program would supply trees plus compost and watering bags and asked the board to consider species suggestions and planting guidance for different site conditions.

On milestone 4, Tanya said program details remain to be developed and that the urban forester will define scope and eligibility. “It’s taking the staff time from the urban forester,” she said, and that the assessments are intended for existing sites — homeowners, small property owners or nonprofit housing providers — not for development projects seeking permitting assistance. The city plans to prioritize assistance geographically in the grant’s orange “disadvantaged communities” area, using federal EJSCREEN mapping as the grant’s baseline, but staff and members noted the federal tool is a broad indicator and local “ground-truthing” will be needed.

The board received several operational updates tied to the same work plan. Tanya said the tree and vegetation protection ordinance (Tumwater Municipal Code chapter 16.08) has been put back on the Community Development work plan and will be worked on by Dana Bowers after key sections of the city’s comprehensive plan are adopted, likely beginning July. Tanya also reported that arborists have completed a second assessment of the Meeker Oak and that a written report should be available by the end of the month; she said she attended a briefing of preliminary findings and that the arborists are undergoing peer review.

The board discussed outreach and program design, including whether tree-selection lists should be labeled “approved street trees” (for right-of-way) versus a broader “recommended trees” list for private yards and what outreach will be necessary to reach residents in the disadvantaged-area footprint. Tanya said the city’s approved street-tree list is on the city website under Water Resources & Sustainability and that communications staff could improve visibility and searchability.

Board members also considered partnerships and capacity: members suggested coordinating with the state Department of Natural Resources urban forestry program, Thurston County groups, the regional conservation district, and tribal partners (Chehalis, Nisqually, Squaxin Island and Cowlitz were mentioned) for technical assistance and culturally informed outreach. Tanya advised any formal approach to tribal governments should begin elected-official to elected-official (mayor to tribal chair) as a respectful protocol.

Motion and name change: Jim Seidore, identified in the meeting roll call as a Tree Board member, moved that the board pursue changing its name to the Urban Forestry Advisory Board. The motion was seconded (second not specified in the record) and carried by the members present; the minutes record the motion as approved. Tanya said she would “chase that” with the city attorney and return with next steps; staff noted a formal name change likely would require an ordinance amendment and some level of public engagement.

Other business and schedule: Tanya said the city has budgeted a five-year canopy assessment and that September would be a target month for an Urban Forester work-plan presentation if the new hire is on board earlier in the year. The board set a tentative calendar of regular items — approved-street-tree list review beginning in February, Arbor Day plant selection in February and handouts in March, and an Urban Forester hiring update in April — and confirmed its next meeting for Feb. 10.

The meeting record includes multiple policy- and process-related clarifications from staff: the EJSCREEN disadvantaged-area mapping is a federal screening tool and may not perfectly reflect local conditions; the Urban Forester’s time logged to the grant will be auditable; the board’s formal advisory powers come from the code that established the Tree Board and limit action unless the City Council assigns specific tasks.

Next meeting: Feb. 10, 2025.